Carrot cake with buttercream

Ingredients:

For biscuits:

• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup shelled pecans
• 2 cups premium wheat flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1.5 tsp of baking soda
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 4 large eggs
• 1/2 tbsp. and 3 tbsp. l. orange marmalade
• 3 tbsp. grated carrots (350 gr.)

For the cream:

• 700 g butter cream cheese, room temperature
• 12 tbsp (180 g) butter, room temperature
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
• A pinch of salt

Preparation:

1. Prepare biscuits: Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease three 23cm round baking pans with vegetable oil and line the bottoms with parchment paper.
2. Place the pecans on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, cool, and then finely chop in a food processor.
3. In a large bowl, combine the pecans, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and granulated sugar. In another bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, lemon zest, eggs, and 1/2 cup orange marmalade. Add the grated carrots and mix well. Then, fold the carrot mixture into the flour mixture and mix again. Fill the prepared pans with the batter and bake for 20-25 minutes. Remove the cakes from the oven and cool completely.
4. Prepare the cream: Using a mixer, mix the cream cheese and butter. Add the powdered sugar, lemon juice, vanilla extract, and salt and mix until smooth.
5. Place the first sponge cake on a serving plate, spread with 1 tablespoon of jam, then cover with 3/4 cup of cream. Top with the second sponge cake and spread with more jam and cream. Top with the last sponge cake and coat the cake on all sides with a thin layer of cream. Refrigerate the cake for 1 hour, then cover with the remaining cream. Decorate the top of the cake with jam and return to the refrigerator.